Journeys a World Away With You
by Air-Quiet-Reader
Summary: As professional heroes, Deku and Uravity are tasked with lifting a world of burdens. With lives on the line, moments of respite are all too fleeting. But at the end of the day, the two can always find what they need in the other. Through sorrow, anger and fear, each of them is always there to lift the other up, whenever the world gets too heavy for one alone.


**Lost in Tides**

The aching weariness in Izuku's limbs made his fumbling search for his keys difficult.

The challenge was minuscule - a minor irritant he would shrug off in another world, another lifetime. But with melancholy oozing from his heroic soul, his lungs gasping desperately against a torrent of unshed tears, the mild annoyance became a spike of fire, searing into his frantic fingertips.

After he uttered a string of mumbling frustrations, he finally was able to scrounge his keys out, before struggling to get the right key in the lock. The click was wondrous music to his ears, desperate as he was to throw himself into his home and find whatever respite he could after the worst mission of his career.

Izuku stepped through the threshold, hurriedly kicking off the big red boots, one of the most distinguished parts of his costume. His sock-clad feet ached as he let them out of the tight confines of his footwear. He hissed his feet made contact with the cold floor of the entranceway, the soreness punching upward through his legs, his soles adding onto the pile of his misery.

He directed his focus to try to get out of his costume, quickly clawing at the various clasps, wishing more than anything to get the tight suit off of him. He was so preoccupied with the suddenly momentous task that he did not notice the soft footfalls approach him, before a pair of warm arms wrapped around him and squeezed tight.

"Izuku…" Ochako whispered his name like a prayer, her voice instantly soothing him and halting his frustrated hands. "Thank goodness you're okay."

The tension trapped in his limbs slowly faded. He let himself go slack, before slowly wrapping his arms around her in-kind and pulling her closer into his chest.

Izuku took a deep, shuddering breath. He tried to think. What should he do? What could he possibly say right now? How could he get the right words out?

"I…I…" The words flashed through his mind. Am a failure. Am a sorry excuse for a hero. Love you. Am not All-Might. Want to climb into bed with you and forget about the world. Want to glue my eyes to the screen and be held by you as the horrors flash by. "Couldn't save someone."

Only at that moment, after holding it all in so long while wearing a courageous smile, did he finally let the rain fall.

"Shh, shh," Ochako cooed, letting Izuku lean down and cry into her T-shirt clad shoulder. "You saved so many people today, Izuku. There was nothing you could have done for him."

The rational, analytical side of his brain knew that to be true. The hostage situation at a central bank had been dicey, involving far too many villains and civilians. It had taken multiple heroes and a ton of his own acrobatics to get most people to safety. But despite his lightning speed, he could not prevent the crazed leader of the robbery, who had hidden away deep in the vault, from killing the elderly bank manager after getting spooked by the opening blows of the rescue operation.

Most every hero on the scene, with far more experience than he, called it an "unavoidable casualty." They had no way of knowing about the extra hostage and were forced to act quickly when negotiations broke down.

Izuku had wracked his mind trying to think of a way it could have ended differently. He could not find a reasonable answer.

But none of that was a comfort to him. He should have found a better way to approach the situation. He should have had the ability to do something to change the outcome of what happened. His nagging, irrational desire to help people kept smashing about inside his mind.

"I should have…" Izuku began to say, before pausing to gulp trough his weeping. "I should have been able to do something."

"We can't think like that," Ochako stated softly into his ears, running soothing fingers behind the back of his head. "All we can do is save who we can. And you did."

Izuku was amazed at the bright, bubbly manner in which she spoke. As a rescue-specialist, she had become much more acquainted with death than he himself had in villain suppression. It was not long ago that he was in her shoes as the pillar of support. But here she was, bright and comforting, doing a much better job than he himself probably had.

She slowly took over the task of disrobing him of his costume, acting with far more precision than he could in his current state. After he was left with nothing but an undershirt and boxers, she grabbed his hand and gently tugged him towards the nearby couch in the living room of their shared apartment. He went along, loose and lost, unable to focus on his more immediate surroundings.

As she gently guided him to take a seat on the couch – the familiar softness feeling wonderous after the mission – she wrapped around him tightly again, putting her head on his shoulder and sinking them both deeper into the couch.

Ochako let him cry it out. He sobbed into the cushions,, pulling Ochako to him, desperate for the comfort of physical contact. She ran her hands down his arm in gentle strokes, her soft touch like a calming breeze down his skin.

As his sobs eventually devolved into sniffles, Ochako pulled out a nearby box of tissues and held it in front of him. He gratefully pulled out a few, blowing his nose and wiping his face. He could only imagine how much of a mess he looked right now, but Ochako maintained a gentle smile, her bright brown eyes gleaming beautifully in the low light of the living room.

"You can't blame yourself," Ochako said gently, breaking the spell of wordlessness that had entrapped them. "You're incredible Izuku, but you can't save everyone."

"I know," Izuku replied, sighing mournfully. "But I want to. I have to try."

"And that's what makes you you," she noted, beaming up at him through her eyelashes. She paused then, reaching up to grab his cheek, stroking a thumb across his freckles. "But you can't get lost in 'what-ifs.' And you shouldn't be so hard on yourself."

"I know but…it's not easy," Izuku mumbled. As soon as his eye wandered, he felt a light tug on the side of his head, directing him to focus back on the wondrous woman in front of him.

"It never is," she agreed. "But we can get through it together, right?"

She intertwined her other hand with his, her padded fingers pushing past his scarred ones. Her eyes sparkled and Izuku found himself overcome with a swell of affection for her. She truly was his oasis.

Izuku sighed and leaned his head forward, pressing her forehead into Uraraka's. "You're right. Thank you, Uraraka."

"Don't mention it," she replied quickly, still smiling up at him, her pink cheeks just a tinge rosier.

"Um…I'd like to thank you properly, if that's alright," he muttered, feeling his own face get a little hot at the proximity.

Mercifully, she laughed. "Always so formal."

"Hard habit to break," he whispered back, before closing the distance between them and crashing his lips into hers.

The rest of the world seemed so much farther away.

* * *

 **Lost in Fire**

 _Uravity: Deku's newest sidekick?_

The big, bold letters on the page mocked Ochako. She kept her face plastered to the table, averting her eyes from the horrendous headline, but it was no use. The image of Deku helping her out of some rubble, the two focused intently no one another, plastered in print for the world to see, would not leave her mind.

The picture also would not leave the tabloid newsstands. Or the hero talk-shows rampantly probing into their relationship. She had become the hero world's number-one gossip topic.

She smacked her balled fist hard on the dining room table. She heard Deku jump from the nearby couch, where he idly read through a newspaper while letting her fume. She had been like this for a few days — periodically slamming her fist or letting out wordless exclamations of frustration — and she had been thankful for his unending patience.

It had all started innocently enough. When their respective agencies started conducting a few joint operations, the two had naturally gravitated toward each other, unleashing a few surprising combination moves on hapless villains. It was completely satisfying punching them out together and a lot of fun being able to hang out with him during mission downtimes.

But the reporters soon got a lot of footage of them together and let loose a constant barrage of questions.

"Why are you two working so closely together?"

"Are the rumours of you two being in a relationship true?"

"How much has Deku helped you with your hero training? You were classmates weren't you?"

"Are you pregnant?"

She had barely resisted the urge to punch out the tabloid reporter on that particular question. She had done her best to cool the burning curiosities of the reporters, but it had been a fruitless effort. Ultimately, when a stealthy photographer caught them making out in an alleyway after a mission (the two could not help themselves), they had been forced to come clean about their romantic relationship.

It had been okay at first. The pronouncement had led to a surprisingly fast surge in both their popularities, as hero forums and shows went wild about the news. Confirmed professional hero couplings were not all that common given the safety hazards, let alone with two heroes in the top 30. The pair had even gotten a rather badass cover shot on Hero Weekly, another good boost to both their notoriety. It was eventually a good boost to their pocketbooks too, through new endorsements.

But the upsides of a public relationship felt short-lived. The paparazzi were relentless on the hottest couple in the hero world. Neither of them could conduct interviews without their relationship coming up, even when dealing with some rather serious missions.

While Deku was less impacted as his feats sent him on a meteoric rise through the hero rankings, she was less fortunate. Soon, the questions directed her way grew more barbed around her riding Deku's coattails. Her own popularity sagged while Deku's fame rose, as hero aficionados questioned whether their relationship was genuine or if she was just trying to latch a free ride onto a shooting star.

"Are you upset that Deku has now risen so far above you in the hero charts?"

"No, I'm happy for him," she remembered replying with a bright face, barely containing the seething rage bubbling beneath her surface.

"Is there a reason why you have stopped working with him as much? Are you about to break up?!"

"…Our agencies have stopped their joint operations and we're both very busy." She had answered a variation on that question a dozen times. She barely stopped herself from informing the reporter of that fact.

"Are you at all intimidated that Fleur De Lis has joined Deku's hero agency?"

"What kind of a question is that? Of course not." She could not contain her anger at that one.

"Your quirk is great as rescue, but how do you use it in your love life?

She balled her fists and let the smile fall from her face. "I am not answering that."

"What will happen to your career if you and Deku get married?"

"…...Next question."

It had all infuriated to her to no end, and she had been short with reporters on more than a few occasions.

She supposed the headline in front of her was not all that surprising. With Deku now into 5th place on the hero charts, she could have figured her media treatment might get worse.

None of that stopped her from reaching her hands out and tearing the magazine in two.

"I am not a sidekick!"

"People know that. It's just a bad tabloid Ochako," Izuku stated logically, looking up towards her from his own newspaper.

"I am so sick of this kind of treatment!" she roared, palming her face in frustration.

"It's absolutely unfair," Izuku agreed, nodding in a well-rehearsed fashion. "We could send them a letter or post something to one of our fansites."

"That hasn't worked!" she shouted angrily, shaking her head. "Nothing does!"

Izuku sighed sadly, shuffling his paper away and getting up to join her at the dining table. He reached across the table and squeezed her hand gently, trying to soothe her fiery soul. She squeezed back, but it did little to placate her frustration.

"I'm sorry, it's just…it's just so annoying. I want people to see me for the hero I am, not the hero in your shadow." She looked over and squeezed his hand again, trying to show it was not him she was mad at. Not really.

He had a contemplative look in his eyes and was scratching at his chin as if about to endeavour into a mumble storm.

"People do see you for the hero you are," Izuku stated seriously, before regarding her with a small smile. "Remember the little girl you rescued from that collapsed building last week?"

"Yeah…" she murmured as the memory flashed through her mind. Lifting rubble away to clear a path through to the girl's room had been a rather standard operation for her. But as the little girl hugged her desperately and gave her the most adorable teary-eyed smile (besides Eri's, of course) the mission was warmly rewarding just the same.

"Well, I found her parents on Facebook," Izuku said, pulling out his phone and swiping his through quickly across the screen. He held it up to her and she was pleasantly shocked to see the same little girl, beaming towards the camera, decked out in an Uravity T-shirt with an authentic Uravity helmet.

"Wow that…that's pretty cute," Ochako murmured, unable to stop the smile in her face at the image.

"And do you have any idea how much the internet exploded about the footage of you punching out those villains by the docks last month?"

Ochako could remember it well. A gang had set up in one of the warehouses there. She had been called in when the idiots had accidentally set off an explosion but had found herself having to punch a few of them out before she could get to clearing away debris.

She had been caught on film and the clip of her showing off her brawling prowess had gone viral. It was a bright spot in a sea of bad coverage.

"Yeah…I remember…" she murmured.

"You even got 'UravityKicksButt" trending for a while," Izuku noted, getting a wider smile out of her in response. That had been a fun little moment. "The public knows what an amazing hero you are. The tabloids know that too; they just want a way to stir up controversy to get views."

"I guess…" Ochako replied, before pouting at the torn magazine in front of her. "Doesn't make it any less frustrating though."

"It doesn't," Izuku admitted. "And you're well within reason to vent about it. But if you'd like, I could think of a few more enjoyable things to focus on."

"Like what?" Ochako asked, eyebrows rising up in curiosity.

Izuku grinned at her, before disentangling his fingers from hers and stepping away to reach behind the couch. He returned with a large photo book with her branding, plopping it down in front of her.

"I know this has all been bothering you a lot so I...well…I've been putting a little something together," Izuku said nervously, his cheeks reddening and his words getting away from him. "I know it might be a little much and I understand if it is but…I thought you might appreciate it."

Curiosity seized her eager fingertips as she plopped open the hardcover of the book. Her eyes were greeted by a familiar clipping from her hometown newspaper. There was a picture of her looking a little awkward standing in a heroic pose for an unseen camera, smiling out with a grin towards the world.

Atop the image, a headline read "Local makes pro-hero debut." She remembered the interview well, her first as a pro, done shortly after she had gotten out of school. Her parents had undoubtedly asked the newspaper to do a story, and it was a pretty small publication, but she was humbled by the coverage just the same.

Ochako turned the page and was met with more of her highlights. A picture of her next to Ryukyu, both of them above a pair of fallen thugs. A picture of her lifting tonnes of rubble out of a collapsed mine shaft with her quirk, with an accompanying newspaper story. A promotional photo of her posing with her first-ever action figure, taken shortly after she had hit the ceiling after seeing how many zeros were in the contract for her first merchandising deal.

Her entire career thus far was summarized within the pages of this album. Her eyes brightened as she saw pictures of her saving people, a few more images of fans emulating her on social media and even a few of the first hero forum posts raving about her feats.

"How…?" Ochako asked with a breathy whisper, fingers brushing across the laminated pages.

"I…well I had been saving it for a rainy day…" Izuku answered softly, but he smiled at the wonder etched in her face. "Being a nerd has its uses sometimes. Do you like it?"

It was like beams of light breaking through the storm clouds. The rain above her head dissipated under the weight of all the fond memories rushing to the surface. The people she had saved. The fans showering her with praise and appreciation. The help she was able to provide her parents when the dollars started to roll in.

She smiled as she turned a page and saw a copy of her first fan letter. The original was safely stowed away in a mementos box, back at her parents home. She had not questioned when Izuku had asked to examine it when she first received it, elated as she was, but now had her answer.

The world could attack her and her heroics over her relationship with Deku. But they could never take away all she had accomplished. Nor could they ever take her down low enough to match how high Deku could lift her.

She quickly leapt out of her chair to grab hold of him, causing him to yelp in surprise. Without missing a beat, she lifted him out of his chair with her quirk and spun him around, laughing and beaming up at him. Her own happiness was infectious unto him and she eagerly put him back down on the ground to kiss his smile.

"I love it!" Ochako shouted, grinning at the happy, blushing face of her lover. "I can't believe you've been doing this."

"I'm glad," Deku replied, smiling and breathing a sigh of relief. "I was worried it might be a little much."

"If you want to do cheesy things for me, you'll know I'll never stop you." Somehow, Izuku always found ways to surprise her with his gestures of affection. "Thank you, Izuku. This was just what I needed."

His smile was bright enough to wash away all of her fears. "You're welcome."

The rest of the world seemed so much farther away.

* * *

 **Lost in Battle**

There was a desperation embedded into the way Deku and Uravity held one another.

The fear and adrenaline were only starting to fade as the two huddled together in a corner of an infirmary tent, out of the way from the prying eyes and frantic pace of the medical staff. The air was filled with the sound of rain pattering across the top of the tent. The softness in which they usually held one another was gone, replaced by a primal need for companionship and a possessiveness only a brush with death could bring.

There own physical injuries were not insignificant. Bandages dotted their flesh, covering various knicks and bruises. The cloth wrapped around Deku's forehead, covering a nasty gash. Uravity's left hand was wrapped up like an oven mitt, the rushed treatment of a stab through her palm, which still throbbed in pain. Neither was worse off than many of the other heroes and villains receiving medical attention, but they had not escaped unscathed.

Words flowed slowly between Uravity and Deku, their rush impeded by the ice of fear. They contented themselves with holding one another, pursuing warmth in one another, communicating in little touches that further affirmed their partner was safe. They idly watched the medical staff work, but their frenzied pace amounted to little more than background noise, as if they were watching a television show before dozing off for another night's rest.

"That was reckless."

It was Deku who broke the silence, slightly more open to taking the first step to talk about his feelings. The back of his analytical mind had already gone into overdrive to process everything that had transpired in the mission but had eventually run up against the blocks his emotions were putting up. He knew he would have to push through and talk about it, no matter how painful it would be.

"I had to do it, Deku."

Uravity knew exactly what he was referring to. The moment where she had leapt in to block the attack of a stealthy blade-producing villain, who had attempted to flank the overzealous Deku and land a solid strike. As she pushed him out of the way and took a defensive stance, the villain had impaled her hand, sending her reeling. He had come at her again, aiming right for her heart, but she had managed to dodge and quickly sent him flying with a counter-punch.

The exchange had sent Deku into a reckless flurry, as he tried to quickly resolve the hideout raid before any other hero could get hurt. She watched as he flirted with far too many close calls as he blazed through the swarm of villains, weaving through them with an incredible speed she could not hope to match. Meanwhile, she had returned to her own duties – pulling heroes and villains alike out of the melee so that nobody got hurt more than strictly necessary (although that did not prevent her from getting her fair share of knockouts too).

Deku leaned his head into her hair, sighing deeply, breathing her in.

"That was a…a scary moment." His statement hung in the air, looming over them like a shadow.

It was not a matter of faith, so much as love. No matter how assured Deku was of Uravity's capabilities, he knew a part of him would always panic when she was thrust into the middle of danger.

Mercifully, they had not been put into this risky a mission – at least whilst working together - since they had gone professional. Seriously threatening missions were few and far between and they had worked separately for most of their relatively short careers. They had both been confident going into the mission, but it had proven to be a shock to both their systems.

Both Deku and Uravity knew they might not have been so shocked had they been operating without the other. But seeing their partners dance with death was something else entirely.

"I guess I should be a little used to it by now," Uravity said softly, managing to crack a smile at the dark humour, idly brushing a hand over Deku's costume. She was well acquainted with the scars hidden underneath the cloth, the mementos of dozens of life-threatening, earth-shattering fights Deku had already been a part of.

There was always fear at those moments, but also a degree of admiration at his unrelenting determination. In those encounters, she always knew it would be fruitless to try and stop him, even if stopping might have been the more rational thing to do. So she always settled on supporting him best she could, whether it be with a timely splint or a timely fist.

That certainly had not changed tonight. She knew she would not sit idly by if he was put into too much danger. But the icy claw of terror that had momentarily squeezed her heart was beyond what she had once experienced. The chains they had forged, binding them together, had become something restrictive, choking her in the direst of circumstances.

"So…"

"I-"

The two tried to speak at the same time, looking sidelong at one another. A matching smile emerged on both their faces, penetrating through the dark clouds swirling above their heads.

"You first," Izuku offered, leaning a little farther back to regard her properly.

"I guess I was wondering….whether you were okay with what I did," Ochako's eyes darted away from him, one of her hands tensing in his palm holding it. "You looked so upset afterwards…I didn't really know what to say…"

Izuku blinked at the memory. He tugged a little at his costume collar as he recalled those frantic, desperate moments where he had pulled her to him once the battle was won. She had been reciprocal, but the desperate energy was a little tilted in his direction.

"Sorry about that, Ochako. I just kind of…lost it a little," Izuku answered honestly. "But you did not do anything wrong. Your actions made sense given the circumstances and I…I can't fault you for wanting to help me, all things considered. I was being reckless and I thought I had it but that blade quirk was cutting things close and it was such a close thing and you saved me and…"

"Mumble storm," Ochako noted with a pinch of mirth in his voice, stopping Izuku in his rambling tracks. He smiled a little sheepishly at her, before continuing.

"You didn't do anything wrong. I know that. But something…somehow, seeing you getting attacked like that I just…everything seemed so slow. It was like my heart stopped. I just…it's hard to explain. Am I making sense?"

"Mmm. Yeah, I think I get it," Ochako hummed and nodded in understanding. "I think I felt something similar seeing you back there. This is…it's scary, Izuku."

Their faces fell as they gazed at one another, the remnants of those fears ghosting a grip over their hearts once again. Ochako pushed herself back deep into Izuku's embrace, closing her eyes and just trying to lose herself In his presence. In the fact that he was alive. He was fine. He didn't have any new scars to show for the close call.

"It's going to be different now," Izuku murmured, his analytical mind hard at work trying to process all these conflicting emotions. "All Might warned me about this. I guess that's what it means to be in love with a hero."

Ochako did not respond to the statement, recognizing the powerful truth behind those words. The two were silent for a moment and she contented herself with listening to the steady heartbeat in his chest.

The heart she so desperately wanted to protect.

"I wish I could keep up with you," she said, sighing, as she thought back to the incredible speed in which he felled villains.

Izuku did not let the statement hang in the air for long, pulling Ochako at arm's length and looking intensely into her eyes.

"You've always kept up with me." He did not want to see her put herself down. She was one of the greatest heroes he knew and he would not accept her reduce herself in a comparison to him. "You saved me today, and it's not the first time."

"But those have always been after you've already been speeding to save the day," Ochako noted, frowning at the thought of it. "It's hard for me to fight by your side the whole way through, Deku."

"You did a pretty good job of it today," Izuku said, smiling at her. Despite the gloom enrapturing them, he found himself desperate to get Ochako to find the bright side of things. He would always fight to put a smile on her face. "You pulled me out of the fire again."

Ochako squeezed Izuku's hand with her uninjured one and breathed deeply, her heart warming at his kindness. She knew he was giving her too much credit, but appreciated his words nonetheless.

"Ochako…" Izuku spoke with a little more softness. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, plunging into a line he feared would upset her more. "I'm sorry If I worried you. But you know I can't really stop what I'm doing."

"I know. And I never would really try to stop you. It's who you are," Ochako smiled, her sombre voice not quite matching her expression. "And as long as you are that way, I know I'm going to have to find a way to rescue you."

"You did more than that, Ochako. I saw some of the blows you were throwing," Izuku teased, delighted when the line managed to make her smile a little bit wider. "But there's nobody I would want watching my back more than you."

She nodded, the grin not leaving her face, as she disentangled her fingers from his and held out her fist between them.

"We'll figure this out," Ochako declared, managing to kindle a spark of fire in her voice. If Izuku could summon the courage and put on a brave face, she could do the same in kind. "We're heroes. No matter what comes our way, we can punch through it together, right?"

Izuku stared at her for a moment, seeing her burning brightly as a wildfire, his heart picking up pace. She was dishevelled, battered, and sweaty, but it was these moments he found her the most wonderful.

"Right!" Deku declared, pushing his fist into hers. The fears of the outside world might claw fervently at them, but together, they could push their way through it all.

For a brief moment, the rest of the world seemed so much farther away.

* * *

AN: Written for IzuOcha Week Day 7: Tranquility.

Hope you enjoyed it! And well done to all the talented creators taking part in this occasion! Thanks to all the people organizing too! ^_^

This is actually a piece for an old project that didn't pan out. I never got around to posting it, but figured IzuOcha week was a good opportunity. I rather like it.

Sorry I couldn't bust more stuff out for this week. I wasn't quite as inspired and I wanted to focus what inspiration I had on a small amount of progress on my super special project you will maybe see someday hopefully.

Please leave a favourite and a review if you enjoyed it! =)


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